Today's Story Line:

BOSTON
— President Clinton's visit to Palestinian territory next week will help end a war of words. The words are anti-Israel clauses in the 1964 charter for the Palestinian movement. Israel wanted them removed as a way to pin down Palestinian sincerity about peace. Mr. Clinton's mediation and now his visit have persuaded most Palestinian leaders to deal with the issue.

Imagine a US president barring certain reporters from press conferences for their "biased" reporting and you'll understand how Japanese journalists think about such a move by the ruling party. Tokyo correspondent Nicole Gaouette dug up the party's internal memo laying out its plan.

* Reporters covering Clinton's visit to the Gaza Strip next week must do some unusual planning. Normally, to reach the Palestinian territory from Israel, they must walk a mile between checkpoints. To avoid that, hundreds of journalists are planning to stay overnight before the president's arrival. Unfortunately, Gaza's seven hotels have been booked solid for more than a month. As for our Jerusalem reporter, Ilene Prusher, she'll be spending the night on the floor of the Monitor's long-standing Palestinian helper (and father of five), Mohammed Dawwas, along with a half-dozen other reporters in need of a place to stay.

FUTURE NEWS

* STANDING UNDER THE OZONE HOLE: Scientists say marine life around Antarctica is being damaged by the hole in the ozone layer. Writer Colin Woodward has a report soon from his trip to Antarctica.